June 30, 2013
Newark, N.J. – The Notre Dame Fighting Irish saw one of its future players selected in the 2013 National Hockey League Entry Draft on Sunday at the Prudential Center, home of the New Jersey Devils.
Future goaltender Cal Petersen (Waterloo, Iowa) was selected in the fifth round of draft, 129th overall by the Buffalo Sabres. Petersen signed his national letter-of-intent in the early signing period last November and was one of three current or future Irish players ranked by NHL Central Scouting in their final rankings. Petersen is expected to join the Notre Dame roster for the 2014-15 season and will begin his second season this fall with the USHL’s Waterloo Black Hawks.
Petersen entered the draft ranked fourth among North American goaltenders in this year’s draft and was the 13th goaltender taken overall, including both goaltenders from North America and Europe.
The 6-2, 183-pound netminder played his first full season in the USHL with his hometown team, the Waterloo Black Hawks, in Waterloo, Iowa during the 2012-13 season. As an 18-year old, Petersen was 21-11-1 with a 2.97 goals-against average and a .906 save percentage while turning in three shutouts as the Black Hawks finished third in the USHL’s Western Conference with a 39-21-4 record.
In the postseason, Petersen was 2-2 with a 4.26 goals-against average and a .881 save percentage as Waterloo fell to Fargo, three games to two in the opening round of the USHL playoffs. A product of the Chicago Young Americans program, he was selected in the 13th round of the 2011 USHL Futures Draft. Petersen has played on the international level in the 2011 Ivan Hlinka Tournament and prior to the 2012-13 season was selected to play in the first-ever CCM/USA Hockey All-American Prospects game in Buffalo, N.Y. There, he played for Team McClanahan and made seven saves in the first 30 minutes of a 5-2 win.
The talented goaltender was one of 14 prospective players selected by teams from Hockey East with Boston College leading the way with four. Of those 14, eight are scheduled to play in the conference during the 2013-14 season.
Petersen becomes the 73rd Notre Dame player to be selected in the National Hockey League Draft, including four first round selections – defenseman Ian Cole in 2007 (18th overall by St. Louis), center Riley Sheahan in 2010 (21st overall by Detroit), defenseman Jarred Tinordi in 2010 (22nd by Montreal) and right wing Kyle Palmieri in 2009 (26th overall by Anaheim). Tinordi never played at Notre Dame.
The Irish currently have 11 players on their roster who have heard their names called at the NHL Entry Draft – senior Jeff Costello (Ottawa, fifth round in 2009), senior Stephen Johns (Chicago, second round in 2010), senior Bryan Rust (Pittsburgh, third round in 2010), senior Kevin Lind (Anaheim, sixth round in 2010), senior T.J. Tynan (Columbus, third round, 2011), junior Robbie Russo (New York Islanders, fourth round, 2011), junior Austin Wuthrich (Washington, fourth round, 2012), sophomore Thomas DiPauli (Washington, fourth round, 2012), sophomore Steven Fogarty (New York Rangers, third round in 2011), sophomore Mario Lucia (Minnesota, second round, 2011) and freshman Vince Hinostroza (Chicago, sixth round, 2012).